Intermittent grip device



March 24, A KREGUN INTERMITTENT GRIP DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 21, 1954 INVENTOR. HnuLF KREELINB.

ATTORNEY.

March 24, 1936. A, KREGLING INTERMITTENT GRIP DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 21, 1934 R.., mm m EL R VG m m M KW F L M. H W B Patented Mar. 24, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to improvements in merry-go-rounds, particularly of the type in which one or more of the occupants provide the propelling power, and which provides amusement, recreation and healthful exercise for children as well as adults, the movements employed in propelling the merry-go-round being similar to those used in rowing a boat. It may be used in the home either indoors or out, and

at playgrounds, beaches, etc.

An object is to provide a merry-go-round structure of simple, and sturdy construction, and so balanced that great force will not be required to operate it, permitting a single child to propel it while several others are riding on it. Another object is to provide improved propelling means in which there are no dead centers, as in the case where cranks are used, and in which no portion of the stroke of the operating hand lever is wasted, as is the case with structures employing ratchets. It is further proposed to provide a merry-go-round that can be started from any standing position by one or more of the occupants, as at the very moment any one of the occupants pulls on one of the hand levers the frame will begin to rotate. The operator may use the full stroke of the lever or may just nibble along with short movements of the lever, but every pull,

7 long or short, will apply rotative power. A fur- 0' ther object is to provide a drive means which will permit any one or more of the operators to stop pulling and rest any time he or they may desire, while other operators apply power from other seats. It is also proposed to provide 35 drive means which will permit the frame to coast from its own momentum, and during such coasting the hand levers will remain stationary at any position in which they may be held, so that the danger of injury from swinging levers is eliminated.

Another object is to provide safety means which automatically disengages the hand levers in the event that the merry-go-round is turned backward, so that there is no danger of breaking or jamming the mechanism.

With the above and other objects in view, em

bodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings and these embodiments.

Fig. 2 is a view partially in side elevation and partially in vertical section, and with parts broken away.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of one of the propelling units.

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation thereof.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view thereof. 7

Fig. 6 is a side elevation showing in full lines the position in which the safety means becomes operative, and showing in dot-and-dash lines 10;

Fig. 8 is a rear elevation thereof. 15,;

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings the merry-go-round, according to the exemplary illustrated embodi 20 ment of my invention, comprises a pedestal or base It], having a socket ll therein in which a stationary post I2 is secured and supported at its lower end. The pedestal may be bolted or otherwise secured to the floor, or when used out of 25 doors may have channel iron extensions l3 secured to its feet M to provide a relatively wide balanced support for the structure. A stationary bevel gear I5 is secured upon the post l2.

A rotary hub l6 having a bearing bushing I1 at its lower end is rotatably mounted on the shaft l2 and rests on a ball bearing unit [8 supported on the upper end of the pedestal ill to provide vertical support. A plurality of bevel pinions l9 (four in the illustrated structure) are mounted in the hub and mesh with the stationary bevel gear l5, their shafts 20 being journaled in radially disposed hub bearings 21 formed in the side of the hub. The lower inside of the hub forms an oil reservoir in which the bevel pinions dip and carry oil up to be distributed to the stationary bevel gear and to the various hub bearings 2|, ducts 22 being provided for this latter purpose which extend from the inner surface adjacent the bevel gears to the hub bearings. A duct 23 also extends to the bearing bushing IT. The gear and hub structure is practically self-lubricating, and is also fully enclosed against dirt and water. To this latter purpose a skirt 24 formed on the lower ,end of the hub l6 surrounds the ball-bearings l8, and a flanged cover 25 is secured to the upper end of the hub l6 by bolts 26.

series of block portions 21 having slots 28 are integrally formed, and to which the inner ends of the radially extending carrier bars 29 are secured by bolts 30, these bars being formed of T-iron and having the upright portions engaged inthe slots 28 while the horizontal top portions seat on the upper surfaces of the block portions. Obviously these carrier bars may be of any suitable form.

A sleeve member 3| is secured at its lower end by set screws 32 to the cover plate 25, and is provided at its upper end with a bearing bushing 33 engaging the upper end of the post I2 and with a head-piece 34 having a series of ears 35 cast thereon in which the upper ends of stay or guy rods 36 are secured, their lower ends being secured to brackets 31 provided near the outer ends of the carrier bars. The carrier bars are connected by tie pieces 38, preferably of angle iron. The frame thus formed is of rigid and steady construction, effectually braced, and supported in balanced rotatable relation about the stationary post l2.

Suitable bucket seats 39 having foot rests 49 are mounted upon the outer ends of the carrier bars 29. Obviously other seats may, if desired, be placed on the tie pieces 38 in alternate relation between the seats 39, and these latter can be in the form of horses or other animals, automobiles, or other such objects which would be attractive or appealing to children.

Driving or clutch shafts 4| are mounted beneath and. in line with the carrier bars in bearings 42 secured to the carrier bars. A hand operated clutch, presently to be more fully described is'mounted on the outer end of each shaft, while the inner end is connected by a flexible coupling 43 to the pinion shaft 20, in order to make alignment of the bearings easier, and to compensate for any irregularities in the structure. A collar 44 secured on the shaft at the inner side of the bearings 42 prevents longitudinal displacement of the shaft.

The clutch comprises a driving collar 45, preferably of'cast iron and fastened to the shaft 4| by a key 46. A clamping friction ring consisting of two half-sections 4'! and 48, hinged together at 49, fits about the periphery of the driving collar 45, the half-sections being preferably lined with a friction metal 59 to more efizectually grip the collar. The clamping ring may, if desired, be in the form of a one-piece split ring.

. A cradle 5| has bearings 52-52 at each side which fit the shaft 4| at each side of the driving collar 45. The sides of the cradle are connected at the upper and lower ends by transverse bridge portions 53 and 54, the portion 53 having an adjustable bearing screw 55 therein which bears against a lug 56 formed on the end of the clamping ring section 41, an opposed lug 51 being formed on the end of the section 48, and having a stud 58 of hardened metal screwed therein.

The hand lever 59 is mounted upon a cross shaft 6|! secured in the lower end of the cradle, and is provided with an eccentrically shaped cam part 6| disposed beneath the lug 51 in such relation that inward movement of the lever forces the lug 5'! toward the lug 56 and tightly grips the clamping ring about the driving collar imparting rotation to the shaft 4| and the bevel pinion IS, the latter meshing with the stationary bevel gear l5 and causing the hub and frame to rotate about the stationary post. Movement of the hand lever in the opposite direction causes the clamping ring to instantly release, and so, moving the hand lever forward and backward causes rotation of the frame about the stationary post.

Forward movement of the hand lever with respect to the cradle is limited by means of a U- shaped bracket 62 secured at each side of the cradle. In order to overcome lost motion a coil spring 63 is provided between the lower end of the cradle and the lower end of the lever, the ends of the spring being seated in a pocket 64 formed in the part 54 of the cradle and a pocket 55 in the end of the lever.

A bracket 66 is mounted on the bearing 42 and projects in line with the cradle, where it is provided with an adjustable safety release or stop screw 61 disposed in the path of the cam part BI and adapted to contact it when the hand lever is swung to the limit of its forward movement, as shown in full lines in Fig. 6, causing the cam part to be pressed into releasing relation with respect to the clamping ring. chance, the merry-go-round is pushed backwards while an operator is holding on to the hand lever, causing'a reverse rotation of the shaft 4| and collar 45, the cam part coming into contact with the safety release screw 61 automatically disen-' gages the friction clamping ring from the driving collar. The merry-go-round may be pushed forward or backward at any speed without danger of jamming or breaking the working mechanism. Another point of advantage is that the hand lever remains stationary at all times, except when the operators apply power.

In Figs. 7 and 8 I have illustrated a modified form of clutch unit. A hardened driving collar 68 is secured to the shaft 4| by means of a key 69, and is engaged by a bevel-surfaced shoe 10 provided on the end of the hand lever 1 I, the latter being pivotally mounted at 12 in a cradle 13 having bearing hubs '|4--|4 at each side rotatably engaged in the shaft 4| at each side of the collar 68. A plunger 15 disposed in a tubular extension 16 of the cradle is pressed into engagement with the shoe 10 by a spring 11 to take up lost motion. A safety stop and release screw 18 is adjustably mounted in a bracket extension I9 of the bearing 42 and is disposed in the path of the shoe 10 to automatically release it when the shaft is rotated backwards, acting in a similar manner to the release screw 61 of the first embodiment.

The operation is substantially the same as in the first embodiment, the forward or push movement of the lever and cradle being free of the driving collar and the rearward or pulling movement gripping the collar and rotating it.

I have illustrated and described preferred and satisfactory embodiments of the invention, but it will be obvious that changes may be made therein, within the spirit and scope thereof, as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

1. In a driving mechanism for a driving shaft having a cylindrical portion, a fixed journal bearing for said shaft, a cradle member pivotally mounted on said shaft at one side of said bearing, clamping means surrounding said cylindrical portion of said shaft having a pair of projected oppositely disposed spaced ends adapted upon being pressed toward each other to cause said clamping means to grip said shaft, an abutment carried by said cradle member engaging one of said projected ends, a lever pivotally mounted in If, by'.

said cradle member about an axis removed from the axis of said shaft and adapted to be moved to and fro in gripping and releasing directions, means on said cradle arranged to limit movement in releasing direction with respect to said cradle and an eccentric cam portion carried by said lever engaging said other projected end, and adapted upon movement of said lever in gripping direction to press said other projected end toward said first projected end, and upon movement in releasing direction to permit movement of said other projected end away from said first projected end, and stop means carried bp said fixed journal bearing adapted at a predetermined position of said cradle member to engage said lever to press it in releasing direction.

2. In a driving mechanism for a driving shaft having a cylindrical portion, a fixed journal bearing for said shaft, a cradle member pivotally mounted on said shaft at one side of said bearing, clamping means surrounding said cylindrical portion of said shaft having a pair of projected oppositely disposed spaced ends adapted upon being pressed toward each other to cause said clamping means to grip said shaft, an abutment carried by said cradle member engaging one of said projected ends, a lever pivotally mounted in said cradle member about an axis removed from the axis of said shaft and adapted to be moved to and fro in gripping and releasing directions, means on said cradle arranged to limit pivotal movement in releasing directions with respect to said cradle, an eccentric cam portion carried by said lever engaging said other projected end and adapted upon movement of said 3. In a driving mechanism for a driving shaft having a cylindrical portion, a fixed journal bearing for said shaft, a cradle member pivotally mounted on said shaft, a lever pivotally mounted in said cradle member about an axis removed from the axis of said shaft and adapted to be moved to and fro in gripping and releasing directions, means on said cradle arranged to limit pivotal movement in releasing direction with respect to said cradle, and clutch means cooperating between said lever and said cylindrical portion of said shaft adapted to frictionally grip said shaft in the gripping direction of movement of said lever relative to said cradle and to be released from said shaft in the releasing direction of movement, movement of said lever adapted to move said cradle about the axis of said shaft, and spring means normally pressing said clutch means in gripping direction, and stop means carried by said fixed journal bearing adapted at a predetermined position of said cradle to engage said lever to press it in releasing direction.

ADOLF KREGLING. 

